Woman seriously injured in one-punch assault

A woman has been sentenced after a one-punch assault left her victim with a fractured skull.

Nottinghamshire Police said Leanne Woodwood attacked a woman in Vine Terrace, Hucknall, Nottinghamshire, causing her to fall and hit her head on the pavement.

Woodwood, 35, was given a two-year suspended jail sentence when she appeared at Nottingham Crown Court on Tuesday, having pleaded guilty to causing grievous bodily harm without intent at a previous hearing.

Detectives said only luck saved the victim from being more seriously injured in the "wholly unnecessary" attack.

Woodwood, of Woodstock Street, Hucknall, had been involved in an argument with the victim in a pub before the attack on 26 May last year, police said.

Pub staff and members of the public broke up an argument and then the landlord prevented Woodwood following the victim outside.

However, police said the defendant walked back through the pub and used a rear exit to intercept the victim in the street.

Woodwood verbally abused her before punching her in the head, causing the woman to fall backwards and strike her head on the pavement, the force said.

As well as a fractured skull, the victim, in her 40s, suffered a fractured eye socket and a bleed on the brain.

Woodwood continued to shout aggressively at the unconscious victim, police said, before walking away.

An off-duty special constable performed emergency first aid after he witnessed the attack on his way home from work.

Footage from the officer's dashcam was used during the investigation and Woodwood was arrested at her home three days after the attack.

Det Con Michaela Williams, of Nottinghamshire Police, said: "One-punch assaults can have fatal consequences and it is only luck that the victim was not more seriously injured.

"This was a wholly unnecessary attack against a woman who was trying to go home with her family."

The court ordered Woodwood to complete 100 hours of unpaid work and pay £3,500 compensation to the victim as well as a £187 victim surcharge.

She was also given a restraining order, banning her from contacting her victim for two years, and told to complete up to 20 rehabilitation activity requirement days.

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